Florence saw itself as the ideal city state, a place where the freedom of the individual was guaranteed, and where many citizens had the right to participate in the government (this must have been very different than living in the Duchy of Milan, for example, which was ruled by a succession of Dukes with absolute power ...
However, the changes that we associate with the Renaissance first occurred in the Italian city of Florence and continued to be more pervasive there than anywhere else. The city's economy and its writers, painters, architects, and philosophers all made Florence a model of Renaissance culture.
Florence was very different because it had an independent government, not a feudal system. It also encouraged the appreciation of art and beauty, rather than appreciating only the works of God as the Catholic Church had done during the Middle ages.
The Renaissance started in Florence, Italy, a place with a rich cultural history where wealthy citizens could afford to support budding artists. Members of the powerful Medici family, which ruled Florence for more than 60 years, were famous backers of the movement.
The Medici family is one of the most powerful and influential groups in European history. They innovated new banking systems and laid the groundwork to make Florence a cultural hotspot. Through their political strategy and patronage of major artists like Michelangelo, they created the High Renaissance.
Armed with wealth created by its banking (double entry bookkeeping system) and trade system, Florence acted as the origin of the Renaissance and benefited both materially and culturally from it. The city's economy and its writers, painters, architects, and philosophers all made Florence a model of Renaissance culture.
Today, Florence is a city in Italy, but then it was a city-state with its own form of government. Florence was wealthy which allowed people to pursue other pleasures of life, which included money spent on the arts.
The city is noted for its culture, Renaissance art and architecture and monuments. The city also contains numerous museums and art galleries, such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Palazzo Pitti, and still exerts an influence in the fields of art, culture and politics.
During the Middle Ages, Florence became more influential than its neighbouring Fiesole, known as Faesulae when it was conquered by the Romans as a result of its agricultural potential and its great location on the Via Cassia. In the sixth century, the Lombards ruled Florence.
What impact did the Renaissance have on European society? It increased the power of the Catholic Church. It enabled Italy to conquer most of the continent. It led people to question traditional religious teachings.
Introduction. Florence has long been considered the epicenter of the Italian Renaissance because of the early and conspicuous development there of humanism and the city's stunning innovations in the visual arts.
Florence is a Renaissance city par excellence. Here, the city's artistic and cultural movement gave rise to extraordinary works – wonders that people from all over the world come to see.